This disclosure relates to power plants for generating electricity.
Solar power plants for capturing solar energy and generating electricity are known and used. For instance, a solar collector system may direct solar energy into a heat-absorbing fluid, such as a molten salt or a synthetic oil. The heated fluid is used to generate electrical power using a thermodynamic cycle, such as producing steam to drive a turbine to generate electricity. The heat-absorbing fluid may be stored in or circulated through one or more tanks. Since the energy collected in such solar thermal power plants can be stored, the power output is more dispatchable than solar power devices that do not include any means of energy storage, such as photovoltaic cells.